This invention relates to a vehicle, and more particularly to a multipurpose highway vehicle incorporating several features facilitating easy ingress and egress to and from the vehicle interior.
A conventional bus or van typically has several steps which must be climbed by passengers to reach the floor of the interior compartment of the bus or van. This presents a serious obstacle to disabled or handicapped persons, such as persons requiring a cane or walker or persons confined to a wheelchair. Steps are required due to the construction of the vehicle frame, which places the vehicle floor at a substantially higher elevation than the curb, sidewalk or street on which the passengers stand prior to entry into the vehicle.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a multipurpose vehicle which is easily accessed, providing advantageous use by disabled or handicapped persons. It is a further object of the invention to provide such a vehicle which utilizes a unique door construction to form a ramp facilitating ingress and egress to and from the interior of the vehicle. It is a further object of the invention to provide such a vehicle which is relatively simple in its components and construction, to facilitate ease of assembly and to provide a relatively low cost of manufacture.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a vehicle defines a front end and a rear end, and has a cab portion disposed over a set of front wheels and an engine located toward the rear of the vehicle and drivingly interconnected with a set of rear wheels. A frame structure is interconnected with the cab portion and with the engine and the rear set of wheels. The frame structure includes a lower substantially horizontal floor portion located forwardly of the rear set of wheels and rearwardly of the cab portion. The floor portion is formed of a pair of spaced substantially parallel side frame members extending in a front-to-rear direction located one on either side of the vehicle, and at least one intermediate frame member located between the side frame members and extending substantially parallel thereto. This construction of the vehicle frame departs significantly from conventional ladder-type floor frame construction, and enables the floor frame members to be relatively shallow while providing the necessary strength. Accordingly, the interior compartment floor can be at a significantly lower elevation than is possible with a prior art ladder-type frame, substantially reducing the difference in height between the floor and the curb, sidewalk or street from which the interior is accessed by passengers, while still providing adequate ground clearance for road hazards, breakover and/or contact interference with road surfaces and other such obstructions.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a multipurpose vehicle including a frame defining an interior is provided with a segmented door assembly including an upper door panel and a lower door member. The upper door panel is pivotably interconnected with the frame for movement between a raised open position and a closed position. The lower door member is also pivotably interconnected with the frame, for movement between a lowered open position and a closed position, and includes an inner door section pivotably interconnected with the frame and an outer door section pivotably interconnected with the inner door section. The upper door panel and the inner door section of the lower door member are each mounted to the frame for pivoting movement about a substantially horizontal pivot axis. A linkage is interconnected between the frame, the upper door panel and the lower door member, and an actuator moves one of the upper door panel and the lower door member between its open and closed positions, and the linkage functions to move the other of the upper door panel and the lower door member between its open and closed positions in response thereto. When the lower door member is moved to its open position, the outer end of its outer door section engages the sidewalk, curb or street, and the inner and outer door sections cooperate to define a ramp providing easy access from the curb, sidewalk or street to the interior compartment of the vehicle. The linkage functions to raise the upper door panel an amount sufficient to define a relatively high opening providing unobstructed entry for passengers into the interior of the vehicle.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, a multipurpose vehicle is manufactured by first providing a vehicle chassis including a cab portion disposed over a set of front wheels, an engine, a rear set of wheels, and a transmission drivingly interposed between the engine and the rear set of wheels. Subsequently, the engine, the rear set of wheels and the transmission are removed from the chassis. A frame defining an interior and having a front end and a rear end is then interconnected with the cab portion of the chassis. The engine, transmission and rear set of wheels are then interconnected with the frame at a location spaced from the connection of the frame with the cab portion. A substantial portion of the frame interior is located between the rear set of wheels and the cab portion, and the engine and transmission extend rearwardly from the rear set of wheels toward the rear end of the frame. This method of manufacture involves a relatively small number of steps carried out subsequent to purchase of a conventional chassis, resulting in a relatively simple construction and low cost of manufacture.
In a particularly preferred form, the above-summarized features and method of manufacture are utilized together to result in a simple, efficient and relatively inexpensive vehicle providing significant advantages of operation in transporting handicapped or disabled persons.
Various other features, objects and advantages of the invention will be made apparent from the following description taken together with the drawings.